The Morning After
by angel0wonder
Summary: Ryuko and Satsuki wake up dreadfully hungover, naked, and in bed together. Is it really what it looks like? Ryuko x Satsuki


A/N- Yo! This bit was written after ep 21 aired. Lesbians and incest within, because hell yeah.

* * *

Ryuko hated mornings. This one in particular was definitely going up on her list of mornings where she never wanted to wake up. Mind-numbing pain immediately greeted her when she felt the slightest bit of consciousness and Ryuko's reaction to that was something along the lines of '_nope, nope, nope, going back to sleep_', but unfortunately bodies don't work like that. As she woke up her headache became more pronounced and Ryuko groaned loudly, flopping onto her side and burying her head in her warm pillow.

Why was her head trying to implode from within?

… She was hungover. That's right, after defeating Ragyo and Nui, everyone went out to celebrate. Nudist Beach held a huge party on their battledship, where they served drinks liberally.

And… Ryuko didn't really remember much from the party itself. She must've had quite a bit to drink. Especially after she got to talking to Queen Eyebrows. She remembered they awkwardly exchanged a few words about being sisters now. Thats when it started getting fuzzy. Made sense, Ryuko supposed. She couldn't think of a better reason to start getting drunk when she was faced with the issue of Satsuki fucking Kiryuin being her damn sister. That was just a whole mountain of issues to deal with.

Ryuko just hoped she didn't do anything stupid when drunk. And if anything, she could take comfort in the fact that the four Devas probably made terrible drunks as well.

'_This is the stiffest goddamn pillow_,' Ryuko thought in disjointed anger. It was like she was snuggling up to a wooden board. She cracked her eyes open, the dim lighting in the room making her eyes hurt. "Ugh, my head."

Satsuki's heavily frowning face suddenly came into focus just a few inches away from hers. "Matoi," Satsuki greeted gravely.

"Wha-" Ryuko's voice was filled with confusion. Why was she snuggling up to Satsuki?

"Please remain calm," Satsuki ordered with a slightly ashen expression, blue eyes looking pointedly at Ryuko's face.

Being a person who wasn't inclined to obey orders, let alone _Satsuki's_, let alone one that told her to calm down, Ryuko shoved away from the other woman in an instinctual reaction to freak the fuck out.

"WHAT THE 'ELL?!" Ryuko immediately regretted her slurred shout, pain stabbing through her head. "Shit…"

"I said to remain calm," Satsuki said, hand going to her forehead at Ryuko's shout. She must've had a hangover too.

Ryuko sat up, hands clutching the side of her head. "Like hell, Kiryuin!" The sheets pooled around her waist and she became aware of the chill of the room on her naked skin.

On her _naked skin_…

"Why am I-" Ryuko looked over at her new bed mate, eyes darting over Satsuki's bare form next to her, eyes going wide. "And why are _you_-"

Satsuki sat up, perpetual frown more present than ever on her face. "That's what I was trying to figure out. There are some… disturbing gaps in my memory."

"Jesus, do you think we..?" Ryuko trailed off, horror dawning in her gaze.

"_Don't_," Satsuki's face was deadly serious. "jump to conclusions. It's just as likely that we're victims of circumstance."

"And what kind of circumstances would lead to us naked in a bed together, huh?" Ryuko hissed angrily, her headache the only thing preventing her from yelling in rage. "Do your eyebrows hold mini-brains or something?"

Satsuki gave her a withering look, clearly not appreciating the attitude right now. "It's possible that we became so intoxicated that Senketsu and Junketsu couldn't bear it," she speculated as her hawk-like gaze took in the room they were in. "Perhaps we spilled drinks on ourselves and they're being cleaned right now."

Ryuko couldn't help feeling slightly mollified. Those were certainly possibilities if she cleared up her head enough to think. Then her eyes widened when she spotted numerous hickies all over Satsuki's neck and chest.

Satsuki caught her gaping look and snapped irritably. "What?"

"N-Nothing!" Ryuko tore her eyes away with a blush on her cheeks. She shook her head, messy black hair brushing her neck and shoulders. For all she knew, it was someone else who put the marks on Satsuki!

"Any idea where my underwear is?" Satsuki's usually clear voice was tinged with obvious displeasure. Well, understandable, considering where Ryuko discovered her underwear in the next second.

"Uhhh," Ryuko said awkwardly, trying her best to discreetly remove Satsuki's underwear down her legs.

"… You're wearing them?" Satsuki's voice hit the bottom of a very big pan. "Why the hell would you do that?"

"The fuck would I know?" Ryuko sputtered indignantly, cheeks redder than ever. "How would you explain _this_ one, smarty eyebrows?"

Satsuki scowled, putting up her hand in refusal when Ryuko tried to hand the panties back. "I assume sisters share clothes all the time."

"Do they also sleep together naked?" Ryuko growled. Satsuki abruptly stood up, snatching the blanket from Ryuko. "Hey!"

Satsuki wrapped the blanket around her shoulders and glared down at the younger girl. Ryuko marveled at the fact that even with just a blanket and mussed hair Satsuki still looked ridiculously majestic, annoyingly enough. "If you're done with your nonsense, get dressed."

"Yeah, well, joke's on you," Satsuki was already twisting open the metal door of the cramped room. "Because I'm never done with my nonsense- shit, she's gone." Ryuko groaned and flopped back into bed. This twist was just one too many for her in such a short amount of time. Finding out Satsuki was her sister was one thing, but finding out there was a possibility that she might've accidentally banged her sister was just…

"Blarghglarghbsrfn!" Ryuko expressed eloquently. She rolled out of bed and began searching for her own underwear, only to quickly figure out they were no where to be found, at least not in this room. She pulled on her bunny pajamas and old sneakers before she stepped out of the metal arched doorway, courtesy of the Nudist Beach battleship, Naked Sol.

Satsuki was waiting right outside, looking more composed than she did just a few minutes ago. Ryuko squinted at her, trying to manage a resentful glare. "Aren't you hung over too?"

"I'm a second away from vomiting on your hideous footwear," Satsuki answered with nary a hint of wariness. "Satsuki Kiryuin never shows weakness."

"Coulda fooled me," Ryuko muttered, scuffing her totally not hideous shoes against the floor. Satsuki started making her way down the corridor purposefully.

"Control is liberty! Contradiction is truth!"

"I don't think those words mean what you think they mean." Ryuko rubbed her eyes as she followed behind Satsuki in the narrow corridor of the battleship. "Listen… Kiryuin," Ryuko felt uneasy about referring to Satsuki any other way. "Do you remember anything? At all?"

"I do recall one thing," said Satsuki as she led them towards the command center of the ship. "I believe we made some sort of wager."

"A wager? With who?"

"Why don't you try taking an educated guess?" Satsuki said dryly as she rounded the corner.

Ryuko growled irritably, though it wasn't all that hard to figure out. "Aikurou Mikisugi?"

"So something is connected to your flapping mouth." Satsuki's tone was more bite than humor.

"Oh yeah, almost as connected as my fist and your face," Ryuko snapped back as she clenched her hands.

The rest of their walk stretched on, the ship bigger than it had any right to be, but it gave Ryuko some time to pull the metal pipe out of her brain. It probably helped that she was life fiber hybrid that she could quickly feel her alcohol-induced headache receding. Though it only helped to usher in the headache induced by the fact that she was a damn _life fiber hybrid_, and she might've done the bump and grind with her biological sister with more than just their swords!

"What about you, Matoi?" Satsuki finally asked, looking over her shoulder to fix the shorter girl with a look. "Do you remember anything that might have transpired last night?"

Ryuko glanced at her face before quickly looking away. "I've got nothin'."

"Odd." Satsuki resumed her brisk pace. "One would think you'd be able to recover easily from this sort of thing."

"I do feel better," Ryuko admitted. "Memory is still jacked up though."

"I suppose we're both simply lightweights." They must've had the same thought afterwards because they both fell into awkward silence.

Thankfully they finally reached the helm of the oversized BATTLESHIP. Aikurou was at the helm, proudly nude, glowing nipples and all. Tsumugu was leaning on a wall nearby, looking a little green. He was probably suffering the aftereffects of the party as well.

Aikurou, however, seemed to be doing fabulously. "Ah, good morning Ryuko, Lady Satsuki," He flashed them a debonair smile. "Or should I say 'good afternoon'?"

The blanket Satsuki wore swished around her feet as she strode into the room. "It will be better once you tell us what you made us do last night."

"Made you do?" The man laughed and his nips flashed like club lights. "My dear ladies, I would never deny your true desires!"

"Cut the crap, you perverted teacher!" Ryuko stepped past Satsuki and stomped her way over to the older naked man. "You should've denied alcohol to minors!" If she had her scissor blade she'd be pointing it at his throat by now.

"Well, now, calm down Ryuko," Mikisugi laughed nervously as he raised his hands compliantly. "I just figured if anyone deserved a drink, it'd be you two."

"And look where that got us!" Ryuko said, pushing his shoulder a little. But a little for her practically sent him flying ass over end over the helm. Tsumugu was quick to take his place however.

"Let me tell you two things," his deep voice started warningly. "The first, is that the only ones responsible for your situation are yourselves." Ryuko crossed her arms defiantly. "The second," Tsumugu paled. "Is that I'm going to be sick." Before anyone could properly react to that he was already darting out of the room with his hands over his mouth.

Aikuro popped up between the two women, unfazed. "If its details you're looking for, I'll be more than happy to provide them for you."

"We'll appreciate any forthcoming information," Satsuki actually sounded grateful for his cooperation while Ryuko just rolled her eyes. "I believe some sort of wager took place between us?"

"Wager? I suppose you could call it that, my Lady," Aikurou said in that tone of his that implied he was enjoying being a step ahead.

"Yeah, and what would you call it?" Ryuko asked impatiently.

Aikurou grinned, nipples turning into two disco balls of passion. "Strip poker."

"…Seriously?" Ryuko slapped her forehead with her hand. "Are you telling me we played strip poker with a bunch of Nudists?"

"You two were at a great disadvantage, yes," Aikura said with mild amusement. "Not very good players, either, though I guess you could blame it on the fact that you two were terrible drunks."

Satsuki seemed loathed to ask. "…How terrible?"

"Well, Ryuko over here kept trying to pick a fight with everyone."

"No different than when she's sober then?" said Satsuki.

Aikurou laughed, much to Ruko's chagrin. "With much less charm and finesse, unfortunately."

"Oi, you two are the ones picking a fight with me right now," Ryuko used her best menacing voice.

"Lady Satsuki on the other hand," Aikurou spread his arms out dramatically. "You were very… how do I say it?" His belt that barely covered his essentials below the waist seemed to ride lower and lower the more he spoke. "You were very… hands-on," he finally settled on with a pleased expression.

"Explain," Satsuki demanded. Ryuko was curious to know what he meant as well.

"Lets just say you acted pretty much the same as you usually do, except you were very touchy, especially with Ryuko here." His nether regions were glowing now, much to the discomfort of the two other women. "Also, you smiled more."

"That's…" Satsuki glanced at his glowing body distastefully. "Very disturbing to hear. At least we know why we're naked. What happened afterwards?"

"After you lost your clothes at strip poker, Ryuko flipped the table in a rage. Then the Elite Four dragged you two away. I believe Senketsu and Junketsu were picked up by the Mankanshokus."

Satsuki thanked the Nudist, and before Ryuko knew it, they were on the move again. "I can't believe I gambled away my best friend! Senketsu's probably mad at me," Ryuko commented mostly to herself. Satsuki said nothing to that. "Where're we going now?" Ryuko asked.

"To see my elite," Satsuki answered. "This is encouraging so far. It's entirely possible we merely passed out on the bed together."

"I guess…" Ryuko muttered. She still had some questions of her own, of course. Like where Satsuki got those hickies, and why she had been wearing Satsuki's underwear. Ryuko rubbed the back of her neck, feeling uneasy. "What if we really… you know. What then?"

Satsuki stopped walking and faced the shorter girl. Her face looked calm but her blue eyes looked more than a little upset at the possibility. "Lets hope not."

"But if we _did_?" Ryuko pressed, searching Satsuki's gaze. For what, she wasn't sure.

Satsuki swallowed as she barely managed to hold her younger sister's gaze. "I do not know." The taller woman tore her gaze away and hardened it. "But I won't be ruled by mere speculation. Giving in to assumptions is the sign of a weak mind."

Ryuko grit her teeth in annoyance. "That's a mighty fancy way of saying you're in denial!"

"Denial would imply that I doubt my ability to control myself, even when under the influence of intoxication, and that is simply not the case."

Ryuko yanked at the blanket Satsuki was wearing, nearly ripping it off and forcing Satsuki to look at her. "What exactly are you afraid of?"

Steel flashed dangerously in Satsuki's eyes. "Satsuki Kiryuin fears nothing!"

"Bullshit!" Ryuko forcibly pulled the other woman closer, emotions running high on an unfamiliar wave. "What was it you said before? Contradiction is truth?" Satsuki's hand came up to grip her wrist.

"And what of you, Matoi? What exactly do you want from me?" Her voice was low and demanding.

Ryuko couldn't think of anything to say, so she just glared harder, an agitated noise bubbling up from the back of her throat. "I..! I want..!"

Satsuki's eyes seemed to soften a fraction even as she forcefully removed Ryuko's hand from her blanket. "Before we do anything, first we must learn the facts." Her tone brooked no room for arguments.

Ryuko frowned at her. "Yeah. Okay." She felt extreme frustration stemming from the fact that she wasn't sure how Satsuki was dealing with their possible indiscretion. Hell, Ryuko wasn't sure how she herself was dealing with this! Was she upset? Was she angry? Did she want to punch someone in the face because of how incredibly unfair this was?

Why yes. Hell yes, she did.

But for now, the other woman was right. They needed to learn what happened. She would save the face-punching for later, when she knew whose face it was that needed punching. She just had a really nagging feeling that it was her own face that needed a good punch.

It didn't take Ryuko and Satsuki long to find the four devas, they were a rowdy bunch after all. They just had to follow the sounds of groaning and the occasional argument and bickering among themselves. When the pair of sisters came upon them, it appeared the four elites were having breakfast.

Though the very sight of them prompted more questions than answers.

"What is the meaning of this?" Satsuki's icy voice made the four snap to attention.

"Lady Satsuki!" They said as one but in completely different variations. Gamagoori screamed like someone just took a metal bat to his groin. Then again, thats just how he talked. Inumuta's acknowledgement was respectful. Sanageyama grinned and waved in Satsuki's general direction. Though he was a few feet off and was waving at the wall, so he must've still been drunk. Jakuzure appeared approximately 3.6 seconds away from jumping Satsuki's bones.

Two things immediately stood out.

One was that Nonon was sporting an impressive black eye.

The second was that it appeared Sanageyama was wearing Ryuko's underwear. The blue and white bra and panties. And that was all he was wearing.

Ryuko exploded at the sight. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH MY UNDERWEAR?"

"I won them fair and square, woman!" He stood up from his chair, crossed his arms over his bra and propped his leg up on the chair. "If you want them back, you're going to have to duel me!"

Inumuta didn't look up from his laptop. "You're facing the wrong way."

Sanageyama continued facing the wall opposite where Ryuko actually was. He suddenly looked panicked. "…I can't feel my eyes!"

"**SANAGEYAMA**!" Gamagoori screamed at him. "**IT'S SHAMEFUL THAT YOU'RE STILL DRUNK**!"

"Shut up!" Uzu tried to kick the table over but he blindly missed and kicked Houka's laptop out of his hands instead. "I'm not done yet! You're all weak compared to me, it's you who should be ashamed- ACKGAR-"

Inumuta tackled him, hands around his neck. "You touched my laptop! I'm going to _kill you_!"

"**NO FIGHTING**!" Gamagoori ripped the guys away from each other, holding each of them up by the napes of their necks like kittens while they kicked and screamed at each other.

Ryuko stood forgotten in the doorway, staring at the violent happenings in bewilderment.

Meanwhile, Satsuki had glided through the room to sit in her personal chair at the head of the table, where her butler was already waiting for her with a pot of tea.

"Thank you, Soroi," Satsuki said gratefully as she was handed her favorite cup. "You don't know how much of a relief it is to drink your tea this morning."

"I can only imagine, Lady Satsuki," the old butler said with a slight bow. "I added an extra ingredient to help alleviate any pain from your night out."

Satsuki sipped, a pleased hum escaping her throat. "A fine job as usual."

"Um, HELLO," Ryuko barged in, trying to get someone's attention. "I gotta find out who-"

"Haven't we already established who killed your father?" Nonon asked snidely. Now Ryuko was the one who wanted to strangle someone.

"You little-!" Ryuko started seething but Nonon was already ignoring her, favoring to stand by Satsuki.

The small girl leaned on Satsuki's chair. "Wasn't last night fun, Lady Satsuki?"

"Even if I recalled last night, I seriously doubt it," Satsuki answered in her straightforward manner. She looked at her childhood friend and raised her hand to touch Nonon's cheek. "Mind telling me what happened to your face?" she asked, examining the new black eye Nonon was sporting.

Nonon blushed at the contact. "Wellllll,"

"Lady Satsuki, If you want to know what happened last night, I was just looking over the video files," Inumata said, dusting himself off after Gamagoori set him down. "Until the monkey over there touched my laptop," he added under his breath.

Satsuki reclined in her seat and crossed her legs. "Go on."

"It seems that last night involved a strange game of truth or dare, and an ensuing fist fight between Ryuko Matoi and Jakuzare."

Satsuki raised a disapproving eyebrow in Ryuko's direction. "Is that so? Why am I not surprised."

Ryuko sputtered indignantly. "I'm sure she deserved it!"

Nonon looked offended. "I'm pretty sure you were the one who deserved it, considering that you interrupted my dare!"

"I literally have no idea what you're talking about!"

Inumuta pushed up his glasses. "It doesn't count as a dare if you're the one who dared yourself."

Nonon stuck her tongue out at him. "Don't get technical on me, nerd."

He smirked, the glasses hiding his eyes. "You started yelling about Lady Satsuki making the best music, then declared that your dare was to claim her music as your own before jumping her in front of everyone."

Satsuki slowly turned to the pinkette, a warning in her tone. "And what made you think I could be claimed by anyone?"

Nonon blushed wildly, holding her hands up. "I couldn't help myself, I was drunk!" She covered her face with her hands. "And you really do make the best music!"

Ryuko snorted condescendingly. "I guess that explains the hickies!"

Satsuki turned to her with a question in her eyes. "Hickies?" She looked down at herself, finally noticing the small marks around her chest. "Oh."

"I'm sorry!" Nonon squeaked. Then she spotted Ryuko and her looked went from apologetic to downright vengeful in a single heartbeat. "But then that miscreant _punched_ me in the _face_!"

"Well, I was fucking right, you deserved it!"

Nonon bristled. "You wanna go, miscreant?!"

"What are you gonna do? Pull the flute out of your ass and hit me with it?"

Sanageyama suddenly appeared between them. "After you're done with her, duel me to get your panties back!"

"As if I want them back!"

Satsuki sighed into her quaint teacup. "Quiet."

The elite immediately went silent at her command. Satsuki took her time finishing her cup of tea. "If I were to guess correctly, Sanageyama was dared to wear Matoi's underwear, and I offered her my own."

Inumuta nodded. "That is correct."

Ryuko raised a brow. "Did you remember that or something?"

Satsuki smirked slightly. "No, it just seems like something I would do."

"Showoff," Ryuko muttered under her breath, turning her head to hide her small blush.

"Out of mild curiosity, what were the rest of the dares?" Satsuki asked as her tea was refilled.

Inumuta cleared his throat. "Lady Satsuki, you were dared to throw me as far as you could. You threw me so far I hit the wall and was immediately knocked unconscious."

Sanageyama and Nonon sniggered at that.

"I see," Satsuki said thoughtfully. "Luckily I didn't think to throw you outside."

"Small mercies," Inumuta agreed.

"And you, Gamagoori?" Satsuki asked. "Did you come out unscathed?"

"Of course!" Gamagoori responded, thrusting his massive chest out in pride. "I would never participate in such a game!"

Nonon giggled loudly. "You chickened out after we dared you to ask the slacker out!"

"**I DID NOT CHICKEN OUT! ****I JUST DECIDED I DIDN'T WANT TO PLAY ANYMORE**!" Gamagoori denied despite his entire face going red. Even Ryuko had to hold back a laugh at his expense.

Satsuki however already appeared disinterested. "What happened after our little game?"

Inumuta informed them that after Ryuko started fighting Jakuzure, Mako Mankanshoku appeared and stopped the fight with one of her motivational speeches about how sleep is important. She then said she was taking Ryuko to bed and Lady Satsuki followed them.

Satsuki handed her butler her now empty cup. Soroi in turn handed her a clean uniform which she took and changed on the spot. Everyone averted their eyes out of respect. "Thank you, you were all very informative," she said once she was ready, decked out in her original white pantsuit.

"More informative than I cared for," Ryuko said under her breath, wrinkling her nose at the thought that she lost a perfectly good set of underwear. One of her only sets, actually. Fuck.

"So I guess we're in the clear so far, huh?" Ryuko said awkwardly as they left the Elite Four with an order to sober up properly.

"So it would seem," Satsuki said with a sigh and nod. They glanced at each other briefly before their gazes darted away. They should be feeling relieved, but for some reason the air seemed more thick with tension than usual.

"Guess that just leaves getting Senketsu and talking to Mako."

They eventually found Mako and her family in the kitchen, devouring everything in sight. Senketsu was also with them.

"Ryuko!" He cried happily as he jumped into her arms the second she walked through the door.

"Senketsu!" Ryuko greeted back warmly, smiling in apology as he slipped himself comfortably onto her. "I heard that I lost you in strip poker, sorry about that!"

"No need," Senketsu said. "I had a taste of your blood last night, and I'm sorry to say that I was quite affected as well."

"So life fibers aren't immune to alcohol, huh?" Ryuko chuckled. "Good to know." She noticed Mako waving energetically at her and Ryuko grinned and waved back at her best friend. The rest of the family greeted her around mouthfuls of food.

When Satsuki walked into the room the Mankanshoku family all waved to her as well. "Oh, hello Lady Satsuki!" Mako greeted cheerfully. "Or should I call you '_God_'?"

Satsuki quirked her head curiously at that, a pleased smirk forming on her sharp features. "I'm not opposed to being referred to as a god," Ryuko rolled her eyes at that. "But I must ask what I've done to earn such a title?"

"Oh, that's just what Ryuko kept calling you last night!" Mako said with a laugh and wave of her hand.

"I did what?" Ryuko asked with a disbelieving sneer.

"Did she now?" Satsuki's lips quirked up in amusement.

"Oh yeah, she said it a whole bunch! After you two went to bed Ryuko kept shouting 'Oh god! Oh god!' for a really long time!"

Satsuki stiffened and all color seemed to drain from her face. Ryuko's face morphed from embarrassed to pure horror as it dawned on her as to what that might mean. "Oh my god."

"You said that a lot too!" Mako said innocently. Ryuko's life fiber heart started beating faster to compensate for the fact that her brain literally fucking died just now. Did that mean..? Did Mako hear them..?

Having… sex?

Ryuko met Satsuki's gaze and froze in place, a cold sweat forming on her brow. The normally calm and clear skies of Satsuki's eyes were now a hurricane of emotion. Satsuki's eyebrows furrowed as her pained expression experienced shock, anger, and guilt all at the same time. Ryuko opened her mouth to say something but her jaw just hung open uselessly.

Mako was totally oblivious to the sudden drop in room temperature. "It just went _on _and _on_, and then Ryuko started begging Lady Satsuki to stop, but she wouldn't and then-"

Satsuki's fist embedded itself into the metal wall next to her, making Mako jump in surprise. "_Enough_," Satsuki ordered in a deadly voice that barely quavered from emotion. The Mankanshoku's stared in stunned silence as Satsuki's fist slid from the new indent in the wall. There were tiny droplets of blood left behind that Satsuki didn't feel. "If you'll excuse me." The tall woman swept out of the room, her heels pointedly marking her exit.

"Shit," Ryuko cursed loudly, her brain rebooting itself. She turned to her best friend and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Mako!"

"Yes?!" The small girl blinked rapidly.

"Tell me exactly what happened!"

"Yes!" Mako snapped off a salute. "After you started begging Lady Satsuki to stop tickling you, I-"

"Are you fucking serious?!" Ryuko's hand slapped itself against her forehead so hard she nearly gave herself a concussion. "She was_ tickling me_?"

"Yes!" Mako nodded like a bobble head, confused as to why Satsuki and Ryuko were reacting so seriously to her silly story. "Then I came in and Lady Satsuki was tickling your feet, and I told her to stop because feet are important and you need them!"

Ryuko was so relieved that she released a choked laugh, the Mankanshoku family all looking at her strangely. Strangely for them, anyway. She pulled Mako in for a tight hug, kissing the girl's forehead. "You should've said that in first place, dummy!"

"O-Oh!" Mako reflexively hugged Ryuko back.

Ryuko separated from the hug and dashed for the door with the full intention of going after Satsuki, but before she stepped out she turned back to her adopted family. "For gods sake, is there _anything else_ I need to know about what happened last night?"

Mako shook her head rapidly. "Nope! After Satsuki stopped tickling you, everyone said goodnight and I left!"

"Are you positive?"

"YES!" Mako saluted with both hands.

"Good!" Ryuko bolted out the door, taking a general guess as to which direction Satsuki left in.

"Do you know where Satsuki Kiryuin might be?" Senketsu spoke up to ask.

"If I had to guess, she probably headed to the highest room in the tallest tower to… stand on it or some shit." Ryuko huffed as she rounded a corner.

"You make her sound like a distressed princess waiting for her knight."

Ryuko snorted derisively. "Hell no, that's stupid. She'd definitely be the dragon dwelling in the tower." Ryuko's sneakers squeaked against the ground as she ran. "Besides, I'm not rescuing her like some knight! I'm just going to give her some peace of mind!"

"Peace of mind?" Senketsu asked.

"Yeah, since she seemed so damn stressed about the possibility of us porking!" Ryuko's teeth ground together and her fists clenched. "Like the idea of us being together is some horrible, repulsive prospect!" Ryuko kicked the wall in a burst of irritation. "God, it pisses me off!"

Senketsu was thoughtfully silent for a few seconds as he eyed the dent Ryuko made in the wall. "…As your older sister, I'm sure she's just concerned."

"I don't need her to be concerned over me. Fuck," Ryuko ran a hand through her messy jet black hair. "I don't even know what I want from her."

"Maybe she doesn't either."

"Yes, thank you, Senketsu, make the situation more complicated!" Ryuko shook her head and kept moving. "Whatever! I just need to tell her that we had a goddamn TICKLE FIGHT of all things. And that's it, we said goodnight and we can put whatever this is behind us-" Ryuko stopped dead in her tracks. She gasped aloud as she finally remembered something. A damning detail from last night.

"What is it, Ryuko?" Senketsu said in concern.

"Damn it," Ryuko muttered quietly as she sped up.

Ryuko was right, she found Satsuki on the highest point on the ship. She was perched outside, over the monstrously-sized guns.

"It's not like you to run away from something," Ryuko said as she jogged up to the taller woman. Satsuki barely spared her an unappreciative glance. She was quite a sight, standing all straight, wind blowing her hair back. Ryuko found it mind-numbingly annoying as well as attractive.

Satsuki opened her mouth to say something but then shut it again, her frown growing deeper. "There is a first time for everything." She crossed her arms under her chest and glowered at the water. "Like this. I never imagined the day where I would actually doubt myself," Satsuki said. "If there was one thing I trusted in this world, it was my absolute control over my own actions."

Ryuko stepped up next to her and mimicked her pose. "So what?"

"So what?" Satsuki raised her brows incredulously at her.

"Yeah, so what?" Ryuko repeated. "Is it really so terrible that not everything goes the way you plan it to?"

Satsuki shook her head and snorted humorlessly. "Yes, it is quite terrible."

"Why?" Ryuko snapped, giving Satsuki's shoulder a shove.

Satsuki glared at her and Ryuko wondered if she was about to be pushed right off the ship. But it seemed Satsuki thought better of it. "Because I became a monster to defeat a monster." Her hands tightened on her sleeves. "But I refuse to become the monster I defeated."

Ryuko blinked at her. "You lost me."

It was Satsuki's turn to roll her eyes. "I do not want to be like _her_." She exhaled slowly through her nose. Understanding dawned in Ryuko's eyes. "I wished to be a proper family for you, Matoi." Satsuki looked Ryuko in the eye, sincere regret there. "I sincerely apologize."

Ryuko scoffed in disbelief. "Seriously? You're apologizing?"

"Is that surprising?"

"Of course it is!" Ryuko laughed for a lack of a better emotion to express. Satsuki pursed her lips, unamused.

"It's my fault-"

Ryuko punched Satsuki in the arm. Hard. If Satsuki had been anyone else she would have shrieked at the fact that her arm was nearly snapped in half by the force, but Satsuki was no ordinary human being.

"…What was that for?" Satsuki asked, only to find a finger in her face within the next second and her brows furrowed as if to intercept the it.

"First of all, I'm nobody's victim!" Ryuko emphasized the words to make it clear. "Second of all, your control is perfectly fine." The shorter girl took a step back to give Satsuki a second to process that. "We didn't have sex last night, its all a stupid misunderstanding."

"… Explain," Satsuki said, a hint of confusion on her features.

"It was a… tickle fight," Ryuko said, her hand snapping out towards the water as if to illustrate something. "If you let Mako finish her stupid story, you would have heard that the only kind of monster you are is a tickle monster!"

Satsuki just stared at the other woman, surprisingly blank-faced. "… Are you lying to make me feel better?"

"No! Jesus, no," Ryuko was tempted to punch her a second time. "You can ask Mako later, I can't make shit like that up."

Satsuki searched her face and eyes for deceit and only found Ryuko's earnestness. "You're not lying."

"That's what I said," Ryuko said in an annoyed voice.

Satsuki took a deep breath and sighed, some tension in her rigid posture loosening immediately. "Good." She closed her eyes for a moment, and Ryuko could clearly see the relief roll across her face. Even her frown disappeared for a moment. "Good."

Ryuko swallowed, looking away. "There is _one_ thing," Ryuko said quietly. Satsuki's eyes reopened and she looked at her sister warily. "I finally remembered something from last night," Ryuko explained, sneakers scuffing against the top of the enormous battleship.

"Oh?" Satsuki prompted. She sounded kind of worried.

Ryuko took a quick unsteady breath. "I remember that after Mako got you to stop tickling me, she uh, she tucked us in," Ryuko smiled awkwardly at that. "She said goodnight and she left the room. I remember we turned to each other and said goodnight. And when we did," Ryuko chanced a glance at the taller woman and saw that she commanded her full attention. "I… kissed you…"

Satsuki's eyebrows did a thing that Ryuko assumed meant she was surprised. "You kissed me?"

"Yeah," Ryuko sneakers did some more scuffing on ground. "I just leaned over… and kissed you. And for a second," Ryuko swallowed thickly as she looked Satsuki in the eye. "I felt you kissing me back." The two stared at each other uncertainly. "After that, it was pretty much lights out."

"Oh." It wasn't often Ryuko got to see Satsuki Kiryuin at a loss for words. They let that information stew between them for a few seconds, wondering why it felt ten times more awkward between them knowing they kissed then when they thought they had had sex?

"So it wasn't your fault or whatever absolute shit you were saying, alright?" Ryuko mumbled, her face turning redder the longer this silence went on. "It was all me, so you don't have to act all embarrassed."

"Embarrassed?" Satsuki asked in offense. Ryuko looked confused.

"Yes, embarrassed. Isn't that why you're up here acting all mopey?"

Satsuki sighed. "Matoi, embarrassment was never part of the equation. Please never associate me with such a term."

Ryuko just looked baffled now. "Then what's the damn problem?"

"Did we not just go over this?" Frustration started to color Satsuki's voice. "Did I not just say I want to be a good family to you? Were you not listening to a word I said?"

"But that still doesn't explain all this moping-"

Satsuki cut off Ryuko's sentence. "I was _afraid_, Matoi," she snapped. "I was afraid that I unwittingly acted on my feelings for you."

For a few moments Ryuko seemed to be missing the screws that held her jaw up. "I thought Satsuki Kiryuin was never afraid?"

Satsuki sighed deeply, eyeing the horizon as if it was an enemy. "Contradiction is truth, remember?"

"So…" Ryuko brushed her wild hair out of her face. "What does that mean?"

"Why did you kiss me?" Satsuki countered.

Ryuko rolled her eyes. "Jesus christ, we've been sisters for five minutes and enemies even longer, and now," Ryuko gestured at the space between them. "Now I don't even know what's going on between us!"

Satsuki stayed silent for a few moments until she took a step closer to Ryuko. "I may have an idea."

Ryuko nervously glanced up at the other woman, a little annoyed by the height different, but jittery at the sudden proximity. She nearly jumped when Satsuki placed a gentle hand on her face. "What are you thinking, Kiryuin?"

Satsuki was slowly leaning down, the faintest hint of a blush on her cheeks. "My fear is my liberation." Her voice was softer than Ryuko had ever heard it and she couldn't help but lean up on her toes to meet her lips halfway.

The press of Satsuki's mouth was barely there, as if she was still giving Ryuko the opportunity to pull away and stop this once and for all, but Ryuko pressed back, tentatively placing her hands on Satsuki's waist. But the kiss only lasted a second before Satsuki pulled back, eyes watching Ryuko's face. The shorter woman blushed deeply and looked off to the side as Satsuki continued scrutinizing her with those stupid sexy eyebrows.

"That was kind of lame…" Ryuko muttered, feigning disappointment even as her arms traveled up to wrap around Satsuki's neck. The older woman in turn wrapped her arms around Ryuko's waist and pulled her closer, their foreheads bumping together. "So what the hell are we now?"

Satsuki's hand slowly caressed Ryuko's back in a majorly distracting way. "We should not limit ourselves to a mere definition," Satsuki said, her face and gaze more relaxed than her softly commanding tone implied. "We'll shape our relationship according to our personal desires, and something great will surely come of it."

Ryuko listened attentively, but only because Satsuki's voice was devastatingly sexy. "I just wanna make out."

Satsuki snorted at that and obliged her.


End file.
